Using Soaker Hose Irrigation

 


I'm going to give soaker hoses a try this year in my 4 1/2' X 50'
vegetable bed.  Having never used them before,  I do have a few
questions.  I will be planting 3 rows of vegetables the full length of
the bed.  There will be 18" between rows.  I will use be using two 50'
soaker hoses connected to a Y splitter.  I will place one hose down the
center of each row.  The hose will be 9" away from my plants on either
side.  My soil structure is clay that will be amended with compost and
other organic matter.  The bed will also be well tilled before planting.
My questions are:  Will a soaker hose provide enough water for plants
that are 9" away from it ???  Also,  how often and for what length of
time should I use the system each week if we don't get any rain ???  The
last thing I would like to know is it better to bury the soaker hoses a
bit or just lay them right on top of the soil ???  The reason I'm
planting so close together in this bed is because I want to give intense
planting and intercropping a try this year.  Just not so sure what size
area two soaker hoses will take care of :)  Any ideas on my irrigation
plan for this year would be more than welcomed :)

Happy Gardening ........... Rich

 


White_Noise_1@webtv.net (EVP MAN) wrote:


ideas on my

    If you mean those hoses that are made from shredded tires and sort
of ooze water along their length, I use them to irrigate 8-foot raised
beds that range from 3-to-4 feet in width. Each bed hosts two 25-foot
hoses. Water comes through a multi-hose manifold (easier to disconnect
than those y-connector thingies) via a pressure-regulated hose (25psi).
The regulator is an inexpensive item from the drip-irrigation section of
a handy-homeowner store (Lowe's). It assures a reasonably constant ROF
regardless of the pressure state of the supply (well pump and
accumulator tank), which enables me to regulate water volume by timing
(Aiming for 1 gal/min, I measure/adjust ROF of each hose prior to
installation).
    My arrangement places each run of hose approximately 4 inches apart
but I know from experience that a single hose in each bed also works
well. Although, my garden soil is fairly well amended, the native
Florida sand continues to percolate upward and the garden always seems
to me "too sandy" but I got good water dispersion even with the wider
spacing of single hoses. However, I use wide-row gardening techniques,
resulting in closer than "normal" plant spacing, and I'm unable to
address your specific question. Even with the wider spacing of a single
hose, my beds get uniformly wet (or so it seems); it just takes longer.
Having said that, though, I think that I'd use a separate hose for each
row, with a layout such as yours. When gauging soil moisture, be sure to
check at several inches' depth and don't just scratch the top
inch-or-so. The water needs of the various veggies are widely available
on the Internet but you will have to adjust for the retention
characteristics of your particular soil type. Your state college that
participates in the USDA Extension Service should be able to provide
guidelines specific to your region
    I install the hoses on the surface prior to planting but, as the
season progresses, they get covered by any top-dressing and I've yet to
notice any ill effects.
--
the Balvenieman
Running on single malt in U.S.A.
Peninsular Florida,
USDA zone 9b

 


Most vegetable gardens seem to need one or two inches of water a week
depending on how hot the days are.  Since I don't know how long to run
my soaker hoses,  I may try this as a test.  I will bury three
containers at ground level, one near the beginning of the hose, one in
the middle and another one near the end.  I will then turn on the water
and let it run for an hour.  Next,  I'll measure the amount of water in
each container for depth.  For example,  if I measure a half inch of
water in the containers,  I'll know that I have to run my system 4 hours
a week in order to get two inches of water to my garden.  Does this
sound like it will work?

Rich

 


White_Noise_1@webtv.net (EVP MAN) wrote:


    No, it doesn't. One inch of rain delivers 623 US gallons of water
over 1000 sq. ft. That is .623 gallons/square foot. Determine each bed's
area and multiply that by .623 to determine gallons required to equal an
inch of rainfall. Measure the total combined delivery rate, in gals/min,
of the hoses in each bed, and then calculating the time required to
deliver an inch to each bed is simple enough. Assumptions are: Constant
water pressure (implying a constant rate-of-flow), and uniform delivery
down the length of each hose. Neither of those assumptions may be true
but it is just a garden, after all....
    Determining the ROF for the hose(s) is easily done by direct
measurement: Connect the hose(s) to a source and place them into a
suitable container; fill it to the point of overflowing and arrange it
so that _all_ of the overflow goes into a second container of known
volume–5 gallons, say. Start the flow, measure the time required to fill
the second container; divide the volume of the captured water by the
number of minutes it takes to fill the container (gal/min=ROF). Close
counts.

 


OK,  I'll need to run my soaker hoses for 6 hours to equal one inch of
rain for the size of my garden.  That should also equal about 6" deep in
my type of soil.  The question now is:  would it be best to run my
system for a full 6 hours in one shot or would it be best to water three
times a week for 2 hours at a time providing we get no rain in any given
week?  I plan to water around 8:00 am. rather than in the evening so I
would imagine I'll have to allow perhaps a little extra time to
compensate for evaporation.  

Rich